MUMBAI:  Exodus: Gods and Kings, which stars Christian Bale, in the lead has topped the U.S. box office with a whopping $24.5 million debut, leaving behind The Hunger Games: Mockingjay — Part 1, which had held the No. 1 position for the past three weeks. The Hunger Games, now it its fourth week, slid only 40 per cent, earning $13.2 million for a domestic total of $277.4 million.

While reviews of Exodus were not all positive as the makers faced criticism for casting mainly Caucasian actors, Fox points out that Exodus' opening weekend audience was quite diverse, which is promising for the film's future. The audience was 54 per cent male, and 65 per cent were over 25 years of age. 20 per cent of the audience were African-American while 18 per cent Latino. Top grossing theaters ranged from major metropolitan cities to smaller towns such as San Antonio. Exodus also opened in several international territories, earning $43.3 million around the globe.

Although December openings are known for their slower starts and longer burns, Exodus, which cost $140 million to make after tax breaks, has earned exactly what box office insiders had expected for the weekend. In the upcoming weeks, the movie will face strong competition from the forthcoming movies - The Hobbit: The Battle of the Five Armies, family musical Annie, Disney's Into the Woods and Fox's threequel Night at the Museum: Secret of the Tomb.